And Other Misconceptions About Translation and TranslatorsorI Need A Fast, Cheap, and High Quality Translation

Translation implies rendering the text from one language (source text) into a different language (target text).
Translation is hopefully carried out by a professional translator. Which brings me to what is in my opinion the first misconception: any bilingual person can do translations. This is absolutely wrong on so many levels. A translator is a language specialist, and attention to detail, critical thinking skills, cross-cultural sensitivity, a good memory and precision are essential qualities in this profession. A good translator always uses specialized tools, from CAT tools to dictionaries.

Another misconception about translators is that we know all the words in our languages. How many times did you hear “You’re a translator, how come you don’t know how to translate this word?” Here’s my answer, “I’m a translator, and not a walking dictionary” (please feel free to print this on T-shirts and hand them out to people)!

Another misconception is that our work is so easy that we can work for free or next to nothing. There are too issues here: translation is not easy and translation is expensive (there are costs incurred, i.e. CAT tools, dictionaries, office space, computers, Internet connection, etc.). When a translator calculates his/her rates, all these costs have to be taken into account, including their experience. When getting offered a rate which is next to nothing, i.e. $0.01/translatable word, it is frankly insulting.

Translation means translating words. Yes and no, because even when translating glossaries and terminological lists, where we do translate only words, rendering the same meaning in a different language involves several processes.

And last, but not least, my favorite one, freelance translators are available 24 hours/day, 7 days/week. Translators do not work in a different time zone where a work week is Sunday till Monday and the work day lasts 24 hours. We do take nights, weekends, and, yes, days off work!

You think you know and understand them, but then they mean something completely different.
False friends are words that look or sound similar in different languages.
Every translator fears that word that gives him a sense of familiarity that can lead to embarrassment, especially when we are rushed to meet the projects deadlines.
Even if hilarity can ensue from the use of a false friend, this can hurt the translator’s reputation; it can cause loss of clients, money or time.
In a world where technology is omnipresent and English is the world’s lingua franca, the challenge of using false friends is even greater. Avoiding them is very time-consuming and labour-intensive, but rewarding at the end.
Below are only a few of the most common examples (and the list can go on and on…):

Do you want to be your own boss? Are you not earning enough? Is your work not being acknowledged?

You decided to go on your own and start your own business. Freelancing might seem the easiest thing ever. Not a lot of paperwork to get started, all you need are your skills – which you already have, hopefully – and a bank account. So what’s next?

Marketing should be the first thing on your mind. You will need to reach out to businesses and to attract new clients and to do this, you only have to apply a few easy and simple marketing tools and techniques. Remember, you always need to stay relevant and to market your business.

Most of these marketing tips are available for free. It is essential that you always try out new techniques and strategies to see which work best for you.

Build your own brand and create a logo to convey the concept behind your brand.

Create business cards with your contact information and hand them out to prospective clients.

Create brochures where you can describe your services and the benefits of businesses using your services.

Develop a website where you can add the services your offer, the advantages of your services and your contact information (including social media accounts). As time goes by, update your website with your clients’ testimonials.

Open social media accounts on LinkedIn, Facebook, Tumblr or Twitter.

You can also create a blog where you can write about the dos and don’ts of your profession, issues and challenges of a freelancer, tips to help out other freelancers, etc.

Post your resume on specialized forums and websites and engage in various conversations.

Post your business on freelancers online registries.

Participate at industry events to start networking.

Offer discounts. There are a lot of freelancers out there and you need to stand out. Even if you offer higher quality services than the others, businesses always want to keep to their approved budgets. Offer discounts to first-time clients; offer discounts to regular clients and offer them additional discounts when they recommend you to another business.

The translation techniques books say it’s a very easy step and they all recommend you leave the translation aside for a day or two and reread it then. But when is it that a translator can have enough time to complete, edit, proofread and deliver the translation by the set deadline? We all have multiple projects we are working on at the same time and it often happens that they all have to be delivered by the same deadline. I’m taking about hours, and not days.

Proofreading means checking the accuracy of a text in terms of grammar, syntax and spelling. What I can recommend is make up your own steps to follow to complete the proofreading of you own work.

Watch out for what you know is usually giving you a hard time. Is it tense? Is it homonyms? Whatever it is, read the content one more time, looking specifically for that issue.

Use the spellchecker. Although it should be a logical step, several times I came across translations containing obvious misspelled words.

Print out the copy. It’s a lot easier to read on paper than on the computer.

Hire a proofreader. While this may seem expensive, it will prove beneficial on the long term. It will help you deliver great translations and, also seeing your work edited by someone else will help you understand your typical errors.